In today’s modern, fast paced world, effective stress management is essential for a balanced lifestyle and vital for our psychological, emotional and physical well-being. When we feel overwhelmed or overloaded by stress in our lives, our natural psychological and physiological response becomes stimulated to help us cope with this stress. The body’s physiological response to stress activates a chain of events involving the nervous and hormonal signalling systems in the body. The two key stress hormones, cortisol and adrenaline, are released, stimulating the body’s fight or flight response. This is a natural response to stress which helps us to cope during short-term threatening situations. The level of these hormones normally decreases once the stressful situation is over. However, during periods of prolonged stress, these hormone levels remain high in the blood, acting to keep the body and mind on high alert in anticipation of other threatening situations. So, when we are experiencing a lot of stress in our lives and we do not manage this stress effectively, we are not allowing our bodies to calm down, rest and recover. Over time, this can have a detrimental effect on our physical health and psychological and emotional well-being. Those who suffer from chronic and prolonged stress often have compromised immune systems, leaving them susceptible to illnesses. They can also suffer from adrenal fatigue, insomnia, anxiety and depression.

It is the way that you perceive, respond to and manage stressful situations that determines your overall capacity to live a calm, balanced and fulfilling life. People perceive and respond to stressful situations in different ways and it is how a person perceives and responds to the stress that determines how they experience stress. Stress can be significantly increased by a person’s constant worry about possible negative outcomes. Constant worry and dwelling on the potential negative outcomes of a situation can also trigger feelings of intense fear, anxiety and panic attacks. Have you ever wondered why two people experiencing a similar stressful situation respond differently, where one may feel stressed while the other doesn’t? It is the way you think about the stress and respond to it which determines whether you manage it effectively or whether you increase your stress levels. The ways in which people respond to stressful situations and the levels of stress that individuals can cope with, varies depending on whether a person has developed effective stress management techniques and strategies.

Often when a person has developed negative beliefs about themselves and life, they have less resilient ways of coping with stress. Their perceptions are biased to begin with, which causes their thinking to be biased toward thinking of the possible negative outcomes rather than the positive. This is a natural protective mechanism and self-preservation strategy used to protect against any further anticipated pain, whether it be real or imagined.

Improved and more effective responses to life stressors can be learnt. More helpful ways of managing stress can be developed by changing the way you think about and respond to the stressor. At Harmony Hypnosis we help you to identify and understand the external causes of your stress and your internal thinking patterns that influence the way you perceive and respond to the stress. We will provide you with practical strategies to calm your mind and body, helping you to maintain balance in your life.

We will help you develop more effective thinking strategies for managing stress by firstly identifying and understanding your thinking patterns that influence the way you personally manage stress. We will help you become more self-aware of your mental habits and behaviour when you are feeling stressed. We will use techniques such as hypnotherapy and cognitive behavioural technique to transform any negative self-defeating thinking patterns which are undermining your ability to manage stress effectively.